University of Iowa president promises review of Gray's behavior

The former athletics official is accused of sexual misconduct.

Nov. 14, 2012

Peter Gray / Press-Citizen

Written by

Tara Bannow

Iowa City Press-Citizen

IOWA CITY, IA. — In her first public acknowledgment of the sexual harassment allegations surrounding a former athletics department official, University of Iowa President Sally Mason promised Tuesday that her staff is looking into the issue.

“I want to assure you that we are continuing to review all the details regarding this matter and how it was handled,” Mason said in a statement. “Once all the facts are known, I will take all necessary actions that are warranted. My priority is the safety and well-being of our students, faculty and staff.”

Mason’s statement also said the university would not make any additional comments on the investigation surrounding Peter Gray, who stepped down last week as associate director of Athletic Student Services following an internal investigation that found his conduct had violated the university’s sexual harassment policy.

The university report obtained by the Press-Citizen detailed a list of allegations, including that Gray, 59, had traded football tickets and money in exchange for sexual favors, had touched a student’s genitals and had been observed for years touching students in an inappropriate manner.

U of I spokesman Tom Moore said he couldn’t discuss confidential personnel matters when asked why Gray remained employed until Nov. 5, although the report was completed Oct. 24. He gave the same answer when asked why Gray resigned rather than being terminated.

Board of Regents President Craig Lang wrote in an email to the Press-Citizen on Tuesday that he and Board President Pro Tem Bruce Rastetter asked the board’s executive director, Robert Donley, to provide more information about the case. Lang declined to comment further until the board has more details.

Lang’s statement that the regents were seeking more information came a day after Regent Bob Downer said the allegations were “very concerning on numerous levels” and asked why Gray was rehired in 2002 even after co-workers observed misconduct during his first stint of employment at the university between 1993 and 1995. Downer also said the case could signal a pattern of insufficient background checks in the university’s hiring process.

Universities are required to comply with Title IX, a law enforced by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, in handling complaints of sexual harassment. The law requires universities to take “immediate action to eliminate sexual harassment or sexual violence, prevent its recurrence and address its effects.”

The law also requires each university to have a Title IX coordinator. At the U of I, that’s Chief Diversity Officer and Associate Vice President Georgina Dodge, who’s listed on the investigative report surrounding Gray.

OCR investigates and resolves allegations that educational institutions that receive federal funds have failed to protect students from sexual harassment. Calls to OCR representatives were not returned Tuesday.

Scott Chipman, assistant commissioner of communications for the Big Ten Conference, said the University of Iowa is not required to report sexual harassment investigations to the organization.

“The Big Ten does not have any reporting requirements,” he said.

Likewise, Stacey Osburn, associate director of public and media relations at the National Collegiate Athletic Association, directed inquiries about the NCAA’s handling of such an investigation back to the university.

Policies governing season tickets are handled by individual universities as well, Osburn said.

U of I policy says athletics department staffers can each receive two complimentary tickets for each home and away football and men’s basketball game, unless otherwise noted in their employment contracts. Those tickets may be given to an employee’s family and friends but can’t be sold or traded.

Employees are not required to report who receives their tickets. However, if the person who receives the ticket is arrested for improper behavior at the event, they would have to reveal which staff member gave them the ticket, Moore wrote in an email.